Ancestors of Erin Taylor

Thomas Luker and Caleb Luker
Ancestors of Erin Taylor

I decided to tell two ancestral stories; that of my 8th great grandfather, Thomas Luker, and his great-great grandson, Caleb on my mother’s side.
Thomas Luker was born about 1660 in England, and later came across the “pond” to settle in New Jersey, near Dover. He earned his living operating a ferry across Goose Creek (now called Toms River, assumedly named for him).
He was a young unmarried man then, probably in his late teens or early twenties, but he befriended the local Indian tribe in the area. He apparently helped them on many occasions and earned their trust and friendship. They came to admire him so much the Indian chief gave him his daughter, Unami Ann, as his bride. This was an offer Tom couldn’t refuse and they were married.
They continued to live there on the river and raised their son, also named Thomas, there among the Indians. He also married an Indian princess named Ann, and had two children. A few generations later came my great-great grandfather Caleb into the picture.
Caleb had come to the Salt Lake Valley in the late 1860’s and was following in his families footsteps by running a ferry from Blackrock, near Tooele, to Antelope Island. He would take cattle back and forth to graze on the island, and made many friends doing this. The prophet of the church at that time was Brigham Young, and he told Caleb if he ran that ferry for 5 years, he would give him the land around Blackrock for his own.
At that time, however, there were land developers interested in the land around the Great Salt Lake. They saw it as a great place to make a resort, and pressured Caleb to move off the land. He refused, stating that the land was his by rights, if not in writing, and wouldn’t budge. Of course, the developers did not believe that Brigham Young had given him that land, and since it wasn’t officially written anywhere, they decided it was free for the taking.
One cold winter day, Caleb had been out taking cattle across the lake and returned home to find the windows and doors all boarded up, and his wife and children out in the snow! He was so angry and disgusted by this he pronounced a curse on the land right then and there! Oddly enough, there never has been a resort able to thrive on that piece of land to this day. Whether you believe the curse was true or not, it is certainly a colorful tale!